“For as long as there is not devotion to Shri Rama and the release of material desires, which are like an abode of grief, the living being should not expect to find welfare and peace of mind, even in a dream.” (Dohavali, 131)

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तब लगि कुसल न जीव कहुँ सपनेहुँ मन बिश्राम
जब लगि भजत न राम कहुँ सोकधाम तजि काम

taba lagi kusala na jīva kahum̐ sapanehum̐ mana biśrāma
jaba lagi bhajata na rāma kahum̐ sokadhāma taji kāma

“I am sure you have heard the story by now. It has set the internet ablaze. There is that annual tennis tournament in a particular part of the world. Aside from the main stadium, which resembles the Grand Canyon in size and depth, there are the outer courts, where fans get a closer look at the action. After the completion of matches, it is common for fans, including children, to approach the court and look for free items from the players. Autographs. Selfies. Perhaps a towel. You might even snag a racket, if you are lucky.

“Well, after winning his match this one player casually looked back and stretched his arm out to offer a hat. He wanted to give it to a child, it appeared, but he wasn’t really paying attention. An adult, who was right next to the kid, snatched the hat. The video looks pretty bad. Almost like something out of a sitcom, the man can be seen laughing about the heist. Anyway, people on social media are torching this guy, the one who took the hat. They found out where he lives and where he works. The guy eventually responded. He did not apologize, which was sort of refreshing.

“Not that I agree with what he did, but I don’t see why he has to grovel to the court of public opinion over it. This world has all kinds of people. Some are nice. Some are not. Some will let the kids have a free hat. Some will not. To me, it is not a big deal. Moreover, I understand the psychology behind the move. I guarantee you that this man grew up around people who were tough on him. They didn’t give him anything for free. As an adult, he now takes the same approach towards children.

“I am not saying I would take the same approach, but you see this attitude reflected in some people. They have no interest in making life easier for others. If they had to suffer during childhood, they are fine with others suffering, as well. If they were abused by their parents, for instance, they might hope that the younger siblings endure the same trauma.

“What I mean to say is that some people are not so quick to help others avoid the same dangers and mistakes in life. They are fine with distributing the misery, such that everyone has to suffer on an equal level. To me, this stands in stark contrast to the Vedic tradition, which passes along something like an instruction manual for life. People had to write that manual. It is like an ever-expanding compendium, with contributions from notable figures along the way, over the course of time.

“But which way is better? Why should I have it any easier than people who came before me? You know what I mean? Why shouldn’t I have to endure my own struggles? Is that not what builds character? Why should someone from long ago help me, when there is literally nothing I can do for them? Most of the time, those people don’t even get sufficient appreciation. The newer generations just take and take, without giving anything back.”

If Vedic culture could be summed up in one word, it would be appreciation. That is the foundation of the culture, which is for the human being. This culture is known as dharma, and since it has no beginning and no expiration date, it is sanatana. Therefore, the true definition of religion, if we want to consider that concept, is sanatana-dharma.

You might ask the question, just who are we supposed to appreciate. There are three principal debts assumed at the time of birth. We owe everything to our ancestors. Whether we like them or not, they set the stage for our appearance. We repay them by continuing the family, by one day bringing others into this world.

There is a debt to the administrators of the material creation. We think we can do everything on our own. We take so much that we become spoiled. We take for granted the sunlight, the clouds, the rain, and the transformation of a seed into a plant within the earth. Goswami Tulsidas uses both the earth and the sky to describe how everything necessary for success in real religion can be found in a single sound vibration.

जथा भूमि सब बीजमय नखत निवास अकास
रामनाम सब धरममय जानत तुलसीदास

jathā bhūmi saba bījamaya nakhata nivāsa akāsa
rāmanāma saba dharamamaya jānata tulasīdāsa

“Just as within the earth are found every kind of seed and within the sky live all the stars, Tulsidas knows that Shri Rama’s holy name is the reservoir of all dharma.” (Dohavali, 29)

We repay the debt to the people in charge of material nature through yajna, which is sacrifice. The third debt is to saintly people, the ones who have passed along timeless wisdom. We repay this debt through studying the Vedas and their derivatives, such as the many Puranas. Even if we don’t feel like giving thanks, we should at least know that we already receive assistance. We do not have to go it alone.

As to why someone might try to help others, there is a logical explanation. Some people suffer so much that they never want to repeat the experience. They also want to spare others from the torture. Whether they get anything in return makes no difference. For instance, if a saintly person tells me that this world is shokadhama, that insight can help me immensely. This tells me that no matter how high I ascend, how much effort I put in, how carefully I deliberate in creating something like the perfect day or week, I am still in a place full of grief. The end result is always sadness and despair, precisely because the guaranteed end is separation.

“The Vedic scriptures and the acharyas, or saintly teachers, are compared to expert boatmen, and the facilities of the human body are compared to favorable breezes that help the boat ply smoothly to its desired destination.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shri Ishopanishad, 3 Purport)

I suffer because of kama. This is material desire. I should change kama to dharma. I should live in dharma. The highest dharma is to take shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Saints of the Vaishnava tradition recommend this shelter, which is known as sharanagati. This shelter is so powerful that it accounts for all other debts and obligations. That is to say, if I satisfy God the person, then I do not have to worry about missing other rituals and observances, which themselves might be part of dharma.

सर्व-धर्मान् परित्यज्य
माम् एकं शरणं व्रज
अहं त्वां सर्व-पापेभ्यो
मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः

sarva-dharmān parityajya
mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ

“Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 18.66)

To want others to needlessly suffer is the way of the kripana, who is the miser. To help others avoid suffering is the way of the brahmana, who is the most liberal saintly person. The single brahmana can help me overcome the negative influence of countless kripanas. The saintly person is like the expert boatman taking me across the ocean of suffering. To be so blessed, I feel as if I can never sufficiently repay this kindness.

In Closing:

For showing me the way,
Never sufficiently to repay.

Because world full of grief,
Envy beyond belief.

That even the adult could steal,
From child to no decency appeal.

But saints never for my misery seeing,
Words such that all troubles freeing.

Categories: questions

Tags: dailyprompt, hare krishna, parenting, poem, poems, poetry, tulsidas